When the talented team over at The Pished Fish gifted us with an Aquavit, Juniper, Star Anise, and Beetroot Smoked Salmon to try, it felt like the perfect addition for one of my favourite salads.

To give them the grand summary that they deserve, The Pished Fish is a booze-infused smoked salmon company. This now Sussex-based family business started out in a rickety garden shed in Camberwell, South London, inspired by the gravlax flavours of Scandanavian fish.

They quickly grew from food markets in Chelsea and Primrose Hill to being stocked in Selfridges, Fortnum & Masons, Ocado, and Waitrose, as well as premium delis and farm shops. You can read more of a detailed version of their inspiring story on their website, but in short, a mixture of a stomach ulcer and covid has since led them to refocus their business to the online direct-to-consumer model. In other words, straight to the door of people like us.

The smoked salmon featured in this recipe cost £7.49, which is reflective of its premium deliciousness and a worthy treat for special occasions – you best believe I’ll be putting my Christmas order in with them (and future family and friends gatherings, for that matter).

To take us back to the recipe itself, I chose the ingredients to accompany the Aquavit, Juniper, Star Anise, and Beetroot Smoked Salmon as there’s a powerful, yet poignant taste of beetroot that bursts through on the first bite, complemented by the radish and vine-ripened tomatoes. The star anise is a little light but brought into its own with the help of a splash of sesame. It’s the perfect combination of foods for a healthy, yet indulgent meal.

Ingredients

For 2 people

• The Pished Fish Aquavit, Juniper, Star Anise and Beetroot Smoked Salmon*

• Wakame

• 8x Cherry Tomatoes

• 1/2 Cucumber

• 4x Radishes

• A variety of Lettuce and Spinach Leaves

  The dressing

• 1 tablespoon of Sesame Seeds

• 2 tablespoons of Sesame Oil

• 1 teaspoon of Lime Juice

  *The Pished Fish salmon could be spread out to three – we were just being greedy as it’s so delicious.

Method

The best thing about making this salad is that it’s a fairly simple case of chopping the vegetables down and tossing them altogether, with the fun part being making it all look pretty. And with popping purple of this particular smoked salmon from The Pished Fish, that part was easy.

For those new to the nutritious delight that is wakame, it’s a delicious edible seaweed that’s usually mixed with soy sauce, rice vinegar, mirin, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, and mirin. To make life easier, you can usually pick this up ready-made from Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and a number of Asian shops.

As you can tell from the ingredients, the dressing is a very simple mix of Sesame Oil, Lime Juice, and Sesame Seeds. A normal sesame dressing would include rice vinegar and soy sauce as well, but this lighter version brings out the flavours of the wakame and the star anise in the smoked salmon without being too overpowering.

Written by Pippa Moyle

Disclaimer: The Pished Fish smoked salmon was gifted to us in exchange for a feature on our website. Our opinions are honest, as always.

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